This invention relates generally to board handling equipment. More particularly, the invention concerns apparatus disposed downstream from a board scanning/crosscutting station that provides selectively for the picking and temporary storage of one of two board pieces produced by a crosscutting operation and suitable for further downstream processing for a period of time equal to the positional and decisional delays inherent in the board scanning operation, thereby permitting the placement of one of the cut-in-two board pieces in a free or empty lug space located upstream of the location from which the board piece was deflected.
It is desirable to operate a board scanning/crosscutting system at high speed and preferably continuously for maximum throughput. Conventional board scanning equipment can profile a board and produce control signals to a crosscutting station to activate one or more saws, thereby automatically to produce an optimum yield from the board. Most often, one or more pieces resulting from such a crosscutting operation are unsuitable for further downstream lumber processing because they are undersized, knotty, damaged, warped or otherwise defective. Such unsuitable pieces are diverted from mainstream board processing into bins or onto separate conveyors for chipping, pulping or scrapping. At other times, a raw board is cut in two in such an operation and it can be seen that both pieces resulting from the cutting operation are suitable for downstream processing, i.e. both pieces are keepers. In this latter case, it is desirable to continue the advancement of both pieces downstream on the same conveyor.
The problem is that such board scanning/crosscutting systems, as well as downstream board processing stations such as sorters, ripping trimmers and edgers must handle individual boards that are generally equally spaced from one another. Typically, this is accomplished by the use of lugged conveyors having discrete board-accommodating locations. Accordingly, when a raw board that is being advanced downstream on such a lugged conveyor is cut into two pieces, means must be provided for downstream handling of an extra board piece for which there is no such board space allocated on the lugged conveyor. Conventionally, board scanning/crosscutting systems have avoided the problem by treating all but a single piece of lumber yielded from the crosscutting operation as scrap, resulting in a volume of waste at great cost.